How to Tape a Finger for Basketball

by
JOSHUA DUVAUCHELLE Aug. 14, 2017

Joshua Duvauchelle

Joshua Duvauchelle is a certified personal trainer and health journalist, relationships expert and gardening specialist. His articles and advice have appeared in dozens of magazines, including exercise workouts in Shape, relationship guides for Alive and lifestyle tips for Lifehacker. In his spare time, he enjoys yoga and urban patio gardening.

Finger sprains rank as one of the most common injuries encountered by someone playing basketball, typically resulting when the basketball hits one of the player's fingers the wrong way. If you suffer a finger sprain, your doctor might prescribe regular taping as a way to help rehabilitate your finger, support and protect it, and keep it from getting injured again when you return to the basketball courts.

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Step 1

Place one end of the strip of athletic tape on the outer edge of a healthy finger adjacent to your injured finger. Position the tape so it's just below your PIP joint, which is the joint in the middle of your finger.

Step 2

Stretch the tape up and across the healthy finger and continue stretching it across the injured finger, keeping it in a straight line so it's below your PIP joint on both fingers.

Step 3

Pull the tape down and under the two fingers until it meets up with the first end of the tape. Continue once more so the tape's been wrapped around your two fingers twice. Tear it off and stick the loose end on the taped surface.

Step 4

Repeat the taping procedure for the same two fingers, this time positioning the second taping application above your PIP joint. You should now have two "rings" around your two fingers, one ring above the PIP joint and one ring below the PIP joint.

Step 5

Wear the tape in this manner for the duration of your basketball game, then gently untape your fingers when the game is over. Continue taping up your fingers for as long as your doctor or physical therapist prescribes.

Tips

You can find athletic tape in most pharmacies. While commonly referred to as the PIP joint, its full name is the proximal interphalangeal joint.

Warnings

Always get your finger inspected by a doctor, even if you think it's just a simple sprain. Sometimes, a sprain can also be accompanied by tiny bone fractures and more serious problems that aren't visible to the eye.